Art Of Video Games Essay, Research Paper

The Art of Video Games

In this day in age, the technology is so advanced that items are being updated and outdated faster than consumers can buy them. There is no more truth in this than when comparing modern day video game systems. First there was the Atari, then came the Nintendo. These two machines were quickly outdated by a number of different Sega versions. All of these are now obsolete, and two major companies are doing battle over the entire industry. The first is the Sony Playstation, a 32-bit masterpiece machine that can also play CD’s. The next is the Nintendo 64, a 64-bit machine that came out after the Playstation and has given Sony some prime time competition. Each system has its weaknesses and its strengths, and we will find out which positives outweigh the negatives.

The first thing I’m going to talk about is game selection, and it is probably the main difference between these two gaming systems. The Playstation came out earlier and has launched more games into the market than their rival Nintendo 64. When a consumer goes into the electronics department at Wal-Mart, they are bound to find a wider variety of games in the Sony Playstation section. Playstation has many of the games that exist for the Nintendo, yet the 64 does not have the quantity to match the Sony. The form of the game is different also. The Playstation games are comprised of CD’s, while the

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Nintendo has modernized cartridges that are similar to the cartridges on the very first Nintendo.

The graphics between the two gaming systems are very similar to the naked eye, but the truth is that the Nintendo 64 has the edge. The Playstation is only 32-bit, while the Nintendo 64 has 64 bits, as the name indicates. This whole bit thing is not that relevant, yet after time one will notice that the 64 shows a clearer picture. I have both a Nintendo 64 and a Playstation, and I must say that the difference in graphics is slim to none. The speed of these systems is very important as one machine dominates the other. Like an old CD player, the Playstation takes a very long time to load information before playing each game. The 64, however, loads information at a rapid pace, thus making the game playing experience superb. The slowness of the Sony can really get those with little patience irritated. The price of these two systems is virtually the same, but the 64’s games are much more expensive than the Playstation’s.

When looking at the controllers for these two gaming systems, one will notice a vast difference in size and shape. The Playstation features a ten- button, hand contour designed controller. It fits in the hand perfectly and is relatively small in size. There are four buttons labeled with different shapes on the right side of the controller and a directional pad located on the left side of the controller. The four buttons on top of the controller are split at two to a side. The Nintendo 64 features a much larger controller with numerous buttons on it. There is also a directional pad on this controller but it also has a joystick in the middle. The basic A and B buttons remain from the original, along with four C buttons directly to the right of them. There is a Z button is in the back of the

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controller, making it extremely unique. The 64 controller can be complicated at first, but the joystick provides an additional dimension to the basic controller. Both controllers come in a vast array of colors. The Nintendo 64 has the advantage in controllers because it has four controller slots in the basic game console, unlike the Playstation that makes the consumer buy an additional item to give it four way play.

The game consoles of the Playstation and the Nintendo 64 are pretty similar in size despite working with two different types of games. The 64 is black and has a curved texture that gives it a good look. The Playstation is a light gray colored, box- shaped, CD playing machine. The simple look has won over numerous consumers, while the fancy 64 has turned some people off. When comparing the accessories of the two systems, the Playstation shows some of its greatest flaws. Besides the advantage of built in four-way play on the 64, it also has something called a rumble pack. This rumble pack can be inserted into an opening of the back of a controller to provide shaking and rumbling of the hand caused by game interaction. The Playstation saw the success of this item and quickly came out with a rumble pack of it’s own. Except since they didn’t build a slot on their controller for such a pack to fit into, one must buy a whole new controller with the rumble pack built in. Because of these costly flaws from the Playstation, the advantage goes to the Nintendo 64 when it comes to accessories.

I love playing video games in my spare time, especially with the technology being so advanced. When the Playstation came out, I got it right away and fell in love with it. I still use it today because of the wide variety of games that are constantly coming out and keeping me interested. If it weren’t for this reason, I might have sold my Playstation by

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now because it is clearly outclassed by the Nintendo 64. The controller has more adventure to it, the graphics are a step up in clarity, and the accessories always create a new experience. Despite the poor game selection, the Nintendo 64’s speed and sharpness combine to make every game superior to that of a Playstation. Like I said before, I have both consoles, and know from experience that the 64 is much more enjoyable and gets much more use than the Playstation.